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chelsfox's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.75
heidilreads's review against another edition
4.0
I appreciated that Jacob started out with a disclaimer of this isn't a primer on how to understand transgender.. it's my story. While the details are definitely specific to his life, they describe a person trying to figure out life... Navigating friendships, fashion, fun... My favorite take away is that there are more commonalities at the core to cis life. However, I still want to know... If a person uses the pronoun "they" is the matching verb singular or plural?? (They is or they are)
throwback682's review
emotional
funny
medium-paced
3.75
It seems weird to critique a memoir. This is Jacob’s story and I’m not sure I have the right to judge it or how they wrote it. But here’s my attempt at a review.
Something I think might be important to note for certain readers: the author talks a lot about their experiences in the Methodist church, their faith, and attending church up to the present day. They definitely talk about religious trauma and conflict with their church community but for those who have more severe trauma I suspect it may be difficult to read.
For me personally, I was overwhelmed by the amount of metaphors they used. And I don’t relate to the “our blood is made of glitter and if they cut us we leave sparkles everywhere” thing. I’m not the same brand of queer as they are which made it hard to relate at times. And the repeated Harry Potter references and fawning over Ellen Degeneres made me cringe. I also thought they were trying too hard to prove their leftist cred. Especially the internal monologue when they meet President Obama (basically OMG I hate drones but he’s so hot) induced an eye roll.
But their story is an entertaining/powerful/funny/heartbreaking/enlightening one. I think this book would be especially good for cis parents to read, to understand how it was growing up and being subtly but painfully nudged into compliance with the gender binary. Churchy folks and college administrators and executives and politicians could also use to read it.
The author is charming and the book was cute and funny. It may not resonate with everyone but I see why it’s popular and I think it’s worth reading even if you won’t love every word.
Something I think might be important to note for certain readers: the author talks a lot about their experiences in the Methodist church, their faith, and attending church up to the present day. They definitely talk about religious trauma and conflict with their church community but for those who have more severe trauma I suspect it may be difficult to read.
For me personally, I was overwhelmed by the amount of metaphors they used. And I don’t relate to the “our blood is made of glitter and if they cut us we leave sparkles everywhere” thing. I’m not the same brand of queer as they are which made it hard to relate at times. And the repeated Harry Potter references and fawning over Ellen Degeneres made me cringe. I also thought they were trying too hard to prove their leftist cred. Especially the internal monologue when they meet President Obama (basically OMG I hate drones but he’s so hot) induced an eye roll.
But their story is an entertaining/powerful/funny/heartbreaking/enlightening one. I think this book would be especially good for cis parents to read, to understand how it was growing up and being subtly but painfully nudged into compliance with the gender binary. Churchy folks and college administrators and executives and politicians could also use to read it.
The author is charming and the book was cute and funny. It may not resonate with everyone but I see why it’s popular and I think it’s worth reading even if you won’t love every word.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Homophobia, Transphobia, and Alcohol
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, and Outing
wm94's review against another edition
5.0
Life-changing and affirming. Jacob has infused every bit of humor, heart, intelligence, anger, and glitter possible into this revolutionary, revelatory memoir.
shelshey's review against another edition
3.0
I went back and forth on 3 and 4 stars. The writing was good and the story like worked, but there was something for me personally I couldn’t reconcile to put with all the other books I read this year. I really enjoyed it and I think it’s a necessary read for anyone who wants to gain more insight into gender nonconforming people.
ttarzaan's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
5.0
leasummer's review
3.0
Please seek out reviews by those who identify with the voice of the author, that is not me.
3.5 stars - So this is a hard book to rate for me. I'm not sure who the author is writing for, if it's for gender non conforming people, themselves or the general world. It felt very much like a diary where you overshare and write on and on and on about something in a very emotional way. It's also funny, or I know it's suppose to be funny but I don't get that kind of humor and never have and so I didn't really Get It like I'm sure most people do.
My favorite parts were the stories with their mother and brother, the stories with people that contributed to their snail shell emergence.
It ends with the graduation from college, and I would have enjoyed it coming farther along, into their current adult life, at least as post script. Maybe that's coming for a further book.
Overall, I do recommend it, especially if you get that kind of humor, which is basically any kind haha. It has a very millennial vibe, so it's possible a younger audience would also relate to the narrative as well. I think the overall message is important and more people need to hear about it.
3.5 stars - So this is a hard book to rate for me. I'm not sure who the author is writing for, if it's for gender non conforming people, themselves or the general world. It felt very much like a diary where you overshare and write on and on and on about something in a very emotional way. It's also funny, or I know it's suppose to be funny but I don't get that kind of humor and never have and so I didn't really Get It like I'm sure most people do.
My favorite parts were the stories with their mother and brother, the stories with people that contributed to their snail shell emergence.
It ends with the graduation from college, and I would have enjoyed it coming farther along, into their current adult life, at least as post script. Maybe that's coming for a further book.
Overall, I do recommend it, especially if you get that kind of humor, which is basically any kind haha. It has a very millennial vibe, so it's possible a younger audience would also relate to the narrative as well. I think the overall message is important and more people need to hear about it.
thatchickengirl23's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Transphobia
Moderate: Bullying and Dysphoria
Minor: Death, Grief, and Cultural appropriation
kurteff's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.5
This book made me start using they/them pronouns